The world economy to be shown light at the end of tunnel
Maxim Tovkailo
A traditional World Economic Forum (WEF) will start in Davos on Wednesday and will last for five days. Highly representative delegations are arriving in Switzerland, no doubt with many subjects for discussion, considering how badly the global economy has been shaken in the last six months.
WEF founder and Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab said yesterday that the forum will focus on shaping the post-crisis world. He blamed the crisis on profiteers.
"Getting a profit is a natural goal of business but it should not be achieved by hook or by crook. Profiteering is inadmissible. We will talk about blocking dishonest dealers," he said.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin heads the Russian delegation in Davos. He is accompanied by his First Deputy Igor Shuvalov and Economic Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina. This is Putin's first visit to the Davos forum, as he did not attend it as President.
In the last few years, Russian delegations were headed by Deputy Prime Ministers. In 2007, the then First Deputy Prime Minister and current President Dmitry Medvedev performed this mission.
Putin will make a speech on the opening day of the forum. He is given half an hour for his speech, after which he will take part in a panel discussion with Schwab, Swiss President Hans-Rudolf Merz, and Michael Dell, CEO of the Dell computer company. Later on, Putin will hold bilateral meetings, for instance, with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.